The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1887-09-09
GENEAIOGY OF THE AMERI-
CAN INDIAN.

The Providence Visitor publishes the
following production
A friend of mine here is making a
study of the early colonization of Ameri-
ca with view to writing it up for a
Western paper with which he is con-
nected. AS this is subject in which
have felt an interest from school-boy
days, I long since formed ideas on the
matter which incline me to the belief
that the ubiquitous Cet crossed the
Atlantic centuries before Columbus.
This view of the question at first as
tonished my friend, but the more we
discussed the topic the more forcibIy we
were struck with certain points Of re-
semblance between the Celtic race and
the aborigines of America AS presnm-
ably interesting t0fthe readers oftRe
Visitor, I give the argument in the
case: u
|. Long years spent among the Indians
of the American continent, studyof
their languages and dialects, their tradi-
tons and tales, convince me that the
North American Indian is of Irish
origin. The arguments to sustain this
fact are numberless; few of the most
important will serve the present pur-
pose.
/. The round towers of Ireland and
America Where did they come from :?
What were they built for, and by whom !?
Any one who has ever seen an Irish
round tower and the round tower of
Newport must at once conclude the one
and the same people built both. The
early Irish built the round towers in
their own country, hence early Irish
explorers may naturally be supposed to
have built the round towers at Newport.
The Danes, all assumptions to the con-
trary, never built such structures.
2. Under the reign of Ireland's early
kings hardy spirits, mindful of the deeds,
sof their Ph@nician ancestors, ploughed
the waves of the Atlantic. These, bold
adventures sought the secret of the
waters to the westward, and along the.
Atlantic coast it is possible that there
may be remnants Of the ships once
used by these hardy sailors.
3, Under the Brehon laws. the Irish
people lived in tribes. The Irish have
always preserved their tribal form of
government. Rank was not hereditary.
but was conferred upon the one most
worthy to rule. It is so, or was so,
among the Indians. These Irish tribes
were called septs. The Indian tribes
were called setts-Witness the Naragan-
sets. It is hardly far fetched to say
that the name of this tribe is a contrac-
ton of Narraghansept, reminding us OF
the Narraghan family of the elsie ever
faithful and the Monahansett, or
Monaghan sept.
Lake Erie suggests Loeb Erne; the
Huron tribe might on pathological
grounds claim to be the lineal descend
ants of the Horans, and the Cherokees
are not very unlike The O'Rorkes, with
an accent on the last e. The Oneidas
may have tie of consanguinity with
the O'Neills. According to some peo-
pie, though i can't vouch for the deriva-
ton, Massachusetts takes its name from
the fact that when the settlement was
about to be christened gentleman of
color" was allowed to name it, but feel
ing difident, only said, Massachusett"
that is "Massa, choose it."
On this principle may not the
O'Regans have settled Oregon, naming
it after the family; in the same way
Dubuque suggests a visit from Duburge
or Burke. It needs no blue spectacles
to see that Shawnee and Shaun are the
same name, or perhaps Shawnee is
more like Shaughnessy than Sioux and
less savage. Who viii question the re-
semblance between Mauch Chunk and
McChunk-in Irish, McCoyne,